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What Causes Sudden Swelling In Face, Abdomen And Legs?
Question: Hi...My name is XXXXXXX ... My sister is in Oklahoma... She has been suffering from an unknown illness that the doctors in oklahoma say they do no know the cause...I just got a call from my nephew and my sister is back in the hospital... Her face, both arms, abdomen legs and feel are swollen... She has had these same symptoms on and off for about a year ...with no specific diagnosis frm the doctors in oklahoma... This evening here symptom have worsen to where she has been hospitalized... Im taking a red eye from NY to Oklahoma...If you can please give me any idea as to a prognosis i would greatly appreciate it. As I want to fly here to doctors in NY as I feel the doctors in her city are not very qualified
Brief Answer:
This relenting issues sounds like either autoimmune or rheumatological
Detailed Answer:
Welcome to HCM: I am very sorry to hear about the troubles your family is going through. Please note that the information you have given is very non specific, but if this has been going on for years, then autoimmune disease comes into mind, swelling like that can be due to thyroid (low) dysfunction. She would also have other things like skin changes where she has lighter or darker skin patches.
In lines with this is also Lupus, this can be a very hard disease to diagnose, but her age and of course gender place her at apt risk. She should also be checked for other masqueraders like mixed connective diseased like myositis, scleroderma, sjorgens.
Another very likely thing that needs to be ruled out is rheumatoid arthritis,RF and Anti-CCP can be checked with bone/Xray to make sure that she does not have cartilage involvement. Sarcoid, and fibromyalgia and the dreaded lymphoma are the last things to workup, as you can see, this may seem like looking for a needle in the haystack, it is easy to make a clinching diagnosis, if the patient has classic signs, and when a patient deviates from this, we first rule out the things that can kill one and then painstakingly try and ease what is happening, at times this happens quickly and in your sisters case I can see it has been daunting task, I wish you good luck, however, if you have the financial capability and blessings, I would do her a favor and send her elsewhere for a second opinion.
This relenting issues sounds like either autoimmune or rheumatological
Detailed Answer:
Welcome to HCM: I am very sorry to hear about the troubles your family is going through. Please note that the information you have given is very non specific, but if this has been going on for years, then autoimmune disease comes into mind, swelling like that can be due to thyroid (low) dysfunction. She would also have other things like skin changes where she has lighter or darker skin patches.
In lines with this is also Lupus, this can be a very hard disease to diagnose, but her age and of course gender place her at apt risk. She should also be checked for other masqueraders like mixed connective diseased like myositis, scleroderma, sjorgens.
Another very likely thing that needs to be ruled out is rheumatoid arthritis,RF and Anti-CCP can be checked with bone/Xray to make sure that she does not have cartilage involvement. Sarcoid, and fibromyalgia and the dreaded lymphoma are the last things to workup, as you can see, this may seem like looking for a needle in the haystack, it is easy to make a clinching diagnosis, if the patient has classic signs, and when a patient deviates from this, we first rule out the things that can kill one and then painstakingly try and ease what is happening, at times this happens quickly and in your sisters case I can see it has been daunting task, I wish you good luck, however, if you have the financial capability and blessings, I would do her a favor and send her elsewhere for a second opinion.
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Sonia Raina
Answered by
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